I personally didn't mind the other Transformer movies. I've never watched the Transformers cartoon, or anything. I found Transformers 3 ok, a bit bad, and the 3rd act (in the city) reeeeeally drags out, but i found some of the action scenes rather awesome (Though i have to say the human story arcs were boring).

Not saying i am an idiot (As Bob might've called me), i just have a system, with 2 different sort of movies: Those i watch for mindless entertainment, and those i watch to leave impressions on me, and how i percieve different things. Transformers falls into the former category, whereas a movie like Letters From Iwo Jima would be the latter.

I'm torn between saying "great episode with an excellent reality check" and "what, this rant again?".

I agree that it's best not to get our hopes up, but if I had to hope my hope would be that the new transformers reboot it enough that the robots don't look stupid. The transformers you showed from the video game look cool, why can't we have that?

Also, which hero do you think (RAMPANT SPECULATION) will either get a TV series from, or killed off in, the Avengers movie? I'm betting in either case it's Hawkeye. Why killed off? Don't you remember who's writing this thing? Why a TV show? Smaller effects budget.

Bob, I just had a realization. Remember how foreign films critics AT THE TIME were always harping on the low budget and stilted acting of the Godzilla films from Toho? Those are considered classics of the film genre now. Could it be that the Transformers films are in a way, the American/Western version of that archetype?

Yes, I'll be the first to admit that the Transformers movie sucked. In my opinion, the first film is the only even watchable. The other two are schlocky mixes of bad jokes and action stunts by a hack director. I personally think that a good plot, taken with bits a pieces for the next movie, would be the recent Transformers Animated that ran on Cartoon Network. Yes, it was often goofy, but it took what was left of the original source material and managed to build a whole new vast universe and mythos with it.

Not every movie is going to be Citizen Kane, and not every movie is going to be Plan Nine From Outer Space. Also, yes, I share your dread of the upcoming Spider-Man reboot.

Truth be told, I kinda didn't mind MIB2, despite its obvious major flaws. It entertained me, at least.

OT, though, I have to think that not many people to whom this video is addressed really have much hope for it by now. Like Sonic fans, they just shake their heads at whatever new disaster comes down the pike and continue to look at things the way they used to be.

It's really interesting (and sad at the same) that "check your brain in at the door" movies like Transformers make so much money compared to movies that try and push the medium to new heights, but that's not new since people nowadays strive for instant gratification rather than working towards something more rewarding.

Actually, i did expect another Transformers movie. I mean, let's be honest here, Saw had 7 parts and that franchise was not nearly as successful as Bays Transformers movies. I mean, sure, they weren't nearly as expensive either but as long as the make more money than they cost it's pretty obvious that they are going to make more movies. It's not like Michael Bay had any sort of artistic integrity.

Glad that you brought up War For Cybertron, because I think that the only way that a Transformers movie will be any good is if High Noon writes it.

On a side note, why would you want Hawkeye to look like the comic version? I mean, the costume is so goofy to the extent that it only works in the comic. The thing he has on in the movie works in the real world.

When finally we see Shia make something of his character, it's over or him. FFS. He was a ball of anger in the last movie, making me literally LOL a lot of times. Even he was sick and tired of his parents. AND NOW HE IS GONE.

anyway, very good point bob. but with all the good comic book movies that are out and coming out that appeal to a wider audience and please the fanboys, it's very possible the next transformers movie will follow that model of trying to please everyone.

I was half expecting "The byzantine ... are weird" to replace "weird" with "depressingly predictable". After all, it all boils down to the well-known fact that sequels are the only thing that Hollywood knows make money and as long as it makes money they want to make more. Fun fact: "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic" is the direct result of the first Transformers movie doing well, take from that what you will.

Reboots aren't that bad. For all the crap Bob heaps on the current Batman trilogy, it's important to remember that the 90s movies were not just terrible, but actually set back comic-based movies because of the abstract paint-by-numbers setting being more in line with the source material while the individual characters were almost unrecognizable without their names.

I have to say I loved this video. Great job Bob. I don't always agree with your opinions but you were spot on here and this was a well thought out video. I nearly laughed out loud at work at the Hawkeye 'can't win them all' line.

Shadowstar38:Glad that you brought up War For Cybertron, because I think that the only way that a Transformers movie will be any good is if High Noon writes it.

You mean, "if High Noon writes it and doesn't have to trim out the interesting parts to stuff it into a boring, "Gears of War" style shooter."

I played through WFC multiple times (achievement whore), and while the foundation for a solid story is there, they didn't do enough with it. I like that they touched on just why Megatron was leading an uprising against the Autobots--because all the other Primes were a bunch of power-hungry dicks who abused those they outclassed. And while the Decepticons stood for freedom from oppression in a sense, they were going about it the wrong way--murdering any and all Autobots they came across (even some who may have agreed with their opposition to the Primes' rule) and corrupting the very core of their planet. The burden of keeping the peace while still supporting the idea of "freedom for all sentient beings" falls to Optimus.

Of course, this is just what I gathered from the cutscenes, because I kind of zoned out during the actual gameplay part. It's like every time they had a chance to flesh out a character's motivations or goals, the game went "NOPE, STORY IS BORING LET'S GET BACK TO THE SHOOTY PART. HOPE YOU LIKE A RIDICULOUSLY OVERPOWERED MELEE BECAUSE YOU'RE GOING TO RUN OUT OF AMMO A LOT."

Seriously--people bash the Bay movies because they're "loud, obnoxious, the characters spout off bad one-liners, and there's so much spiky metal flying around." Really? That's the impression I got from WFC.

Okay, Bob, um... the Spider-Man thing... Could you just tone it down a bit?

I'm not going to bash you for not having the highest opinion of the film's production history, it is - after all - Sony's attempt to keep a hold of the film rights to the character and stop them from returning to Marvel Studios. Nobody's disputing that, and yes it does sit on the douchebag side of the spectrum of the movie business. And, yes, it did have a pretty weak teaser trailer (second trailer was better IMHO, but I digress).

But when your criticisms of it start getting to the nitpick levels of deriding it over hair and wardrobe choices, and you use any mention of the word 'reboot' as an excuse to glower at it... well... I hate to say it but, you're kind of teetering on troll territory there.

Look, all I'm saying is if you're (publicly) building up this kind of animosity toward it, it just looks you're not going to approach it with an open mind, and we just won't trust your opinion when you come to review it.

All I'm saying is cautious optimism (in this case, the Transformers movies can go to hell) is a lot healthier than abject negativity. And anyway, as you pointed out a few weeks ago, X-Men: First Class was rebooted under similar circumstances (by those bastions of quality at 20th Century Fox [sarcasm]) and that turned out okay (not sarcasm).

I hang around some Transformers fans on the internet and the only Transformers fans that seem excited about Transformers 4: the Quest for More Money are the fans who think that Micheal Bay can do no wrong and he's the greatest director who ever lived. The other Transformers fans see it as Transformers 4: More of the Same because Micheal Bay just doesn't grow or change as a director.

Perhaps Bob is right we are just damn lucky that every once in a while we get a big action movie that doesn't require you to leave your brain out in the car to enjoy it.

Kind of sad but watching people try to defend the dumbing down of movies or defending the lowest common denominator is often more fun that the films people defend.

Michael Bay has millions of dollars of his own money, and two fairly successful actors willing to take big paycuts for his dream project. Why couldn't he finance this himself?

Sabrestar:Ah, someone else who hasn't forgotten the best line from MIB.

At the time, I thought that line was a brilliant insight. Now I realize it's the kind of justification that people who think they're smart use to build up their own sense of superiority. Recent research instead suggests that in some situations, individuals are smarter, but in others, groups are. Maybe 100 years ago you could be that brilliant lone scientist, but I don't think a single individual could have mapped the human genome.

I love the whole us and them aspect to this. The nimrdo nation compared to Bob's sophisticated lovers of cinema who enjoy the fine film of G.I Joe and engage in intelligent discussions of the perkiness of an actress breasts while stating their opposition to misogyny.